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Transcript

Three Ways to Write About Your Pain · The Daily Writer

• 0:09
  SPEAKER_00: Welcome to the Daily Writer, where we share a lesson each day to help you cultivate the habits for creative success.
• 0:17
  SPEAKER_00: If you had to pin down one universal emotion that all humans experience, it's pain.
• 0:23
  SPEAKER_00: To be human means to suffer.
• 0:26
  SPEAKER_00: We suffer on a daily basis as we deal with the disappointments and frustrations of everyday life, but then we also suffer when we go through the occasional major trauma, such as the death of a loved one, losing a job, a major sickness, or a divorce.
• 0:40
  SPEAKER_00: We're often afraid to share our pain because we're afraid that we're going to look weak.
• 0:44
  SPEAKER_00: So instead, we lock up our feelings in a box, set it on a shelf in the back of a dark closet, and just try to forget about it.
• 0:52
  SPEAKER_00: Well, this is not a healthy way to deal with grief or loss.
• 0:56
  SPEAKER_00: One of the best ways of working through your pain is to write about it.
• 0:59
  SPEAKER_00: The Brazilian novelist Paulo Coelho said, tears are words that need to be written.
• 1:05
  SPEAKER_00: So how exactly should you write about your tears?
• 1:08
  SPEAKER_00: Well, here are three ideas.
• 1:11
  SPEAKER_00: First, you can journal about them.
• 1:13
  SPEAKER_00: Journaling is a time-tested method for working out your feelings and getting perspective on life's events and disappointments.
• 1:20
  SPEAKER_00: Second, you can write nonfiction articles, books, or other types of material where you talk about your experiences directly.
• 1:29
  SPEAKER_00: This is also a helpful way to work through your feelings with the added benefit of helping other people as well.
• 1:34
  SPEAKER_00: And third, you can channel your experiences into fiction.
• 1:38
  SPEAKER_00: This is an indirect way of processing your pain, but it can also be the most powerful way because you can say things through fiction that you could never say in nonfiction.
• 1:47
  SPEAKER_00: The way you're saying them is through events and dialogue and characters in your story.
• 1:53
  SPEAKER_00: Whatever pathways you choose, don't be afraid of your feelings.
• 1:57
  SPEAKER_00: Don't just stuff them in a box or lock them away.
• 2:00
  SPEAKER_00: Writing about your pain can bring healing not just for you, but for your readers as well.
• 2:05
  SPEAKER_00: Thanks so much for listening to today's episode.
• 2:08
  SPEAKER_00: For more, you can visit us at dailywriterlife.com.
• 2:12
  SPEAKER_00: Thanks, and I'll see you tomorrow.